The bracketology outlook for the SEC continues to be strong, if not wildly fluid, as the NCAA Tournament quickly approaches.

ESPN bracket expert Joe Lunardi is now updating his field of 68 projections multiple times each week as we head toward the
home stretch of the college basketball regular season. And the one thing that seems to remain constant is his belief that
the SEC will be an eight-bid league when it comes time for the NCAA selection committee to reveal its final choices next month.

Only the ACC, with 9 teams, is projected to place more in the tournament.

More than half of the SEC is projected to join the 2018 men’s basketball NCAA Tournament field in Lunardi’s
latest bracket release on Monday. And a ninth team may be knocking on the door as well.

Here’s a look at each SEC team he projects to make the NCAA Tournament, along with the predicted seed and opponent:

Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology projections for the SEC

SEC TEAM

PROJECTED SEED

PROJECTED OPPONENT

Alabama

No. 9 in South Region

Seton Hall

Arkansas

No. 8 in Midwest Region

Miami (Fla.)

Auburn

No. 3 in South Region

UNC Greensboro

Florida

No. 6 in Midwest Region

Middle Tennessee

Kentucky

No. 5 in Midwest Region

Loyola-Chicago

Missouri

No. 9 in West Region

Butler

Tennessee

No. 3 in West Region

Northern Kentucky

Texas A&amp;M

No. 7 in East Region

Kansas St.

So how does this projection differ from the one he released on Thursday? Quite a bit, actually.

Let’s break it down:

After several weeks of looking secure on the No. 2 seed line, Auburn has dropped to No. 3 in Lunardi’s latest projection.
That’d be a huge disappointment for Tigers fans who have their hearts set on that No. 15 matchup in the first round, but there’s
still time for Bruce Pearl to turn things around.

Alabama is still projected to play Seton Hall in No. 8 vs. No. 9 matchup, but Lunardi has dropped the Crimson Tide from No.
8 to No. 9 in the scenario. That may only mean a change in uniform color to most, but it could be a sign that Alabama is vulnerable
and could slip back into the bubble watch if the Tide doesn’t finish the season strongly.

Arkansas’ solid play is finally getting noticed by the bracket guru, as the Hogs moved up to a No. 8 seed. Miami would not
be a fun draw, though.

Florida stopped its bracketology free fall, jumping back onto the No. 6 seed line after falling from No. 4 seed all the way
to No. 7 seed in a matter of two weeks. Middle Tennessee, which has won its first round games against Michigan State and Minnesota
during the last two tournaments, would not be an ideal draw though.

Missouri came crashing down in the latest projection, dropping from a No. 7 to No. 9 seed after a blowout loss at Kentucky
over the weekend.

Speaking of the Cats, Kentucky has settled into the group of No. 5 seeds after putting a four-game losing streak firmly in
the rear-view mirror.

Tennessee moved up from No. 4 to No. 3 seed as Rick Barnes’ team joins Auburn as the league’s top seeded teams in Lunardi’s
bracket.

Texas A&amp;M made a big move forward, moving from No. 9 seed projection on Thursday to the No. 7 seed line on Monday.

The league placed two teams in the
latest AP Poll, which was released on Monday, Feb. 19.